Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has charged a Dallas debt management firm with defrauding its customers.

The state’s enforcement action sought an asset freeze and temporary restraining order against Credit Alliance Group, doing business as Credit Services Today, and Shane V. Garner, owner and chief executive.

State investigators said Credit Alliance marketed its services through a now-defunct website and direct customer emails.

The company contacted consumers with debt problems, claiming it would eliminate 20 to 60 percent of their debt within three years, investigators said.

“CAG promised that customers would not owe the firm ‘a dime’ if the firm failed to deliver on its claims,” Abbott’s office said. “However, the state’s investigation revealed that customers were nonetheless charged up-front fees, sometimes up to 35 percent of the debt they owed, and that CAG failed to deliver on its services.”

According to court documents filed by the state, Credit Alliance customers were promised that their payments to the firm would be deposited into separate accounts “subject to their control and managed by the firm.”

“State investigators learned, however, that those promises were not honored and that CAG deposited/commingled customers’ funds into its own operating account,” Abbott’s office said. “As a result, customers had no actual control over their own money. Further, defendant Garner used customer funds to pay his personal bills.”